Ziff-Davis to Launch Computer Channel in 1998

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Ziff-Davis to Launch Computer Channel in 1998

Citing an "insatiable" demand for computer information and news, Ziff-Davis CEO Eric Hippeau said Tuesday that the company would launch ZDTV: Your Computer Channel, the first 24-hour television network dedicated specifically to computers. The new channel is to be up and running by early next year.

Ziff-Davis, which publishes magazines such as *PCWeek and MacUser, and produces the MSNBC show The Site, expects to spend more than US$100 million to create the new television production division, greatly expand the San Francisco studio, and hire 300 new staffers to complement the 500 editors and 100 technicians it already employs. Hippeau said the company expected 20 million to 25 million viewers for the network within three years, adding, "Can you imagine the year 2000 without a computer channel?"

In addition to repurposing successful magazines like FamilyPC for television, original programming could include MarketWatch, a morning show about stocks and investments, Outrageous Bytes, a look at people's more unusual relationships with computers, and a home-business advice program called The Home Office. The new lineup would not include The Site, which Hippeau stressed is part of a "long-term arrangement [with MSNBC] that we're very happy with."

Ziff-Davis will also co-produce two more shows this year for other channels.

All the shows have been developed inside the company, Hippeau stressed, adding that the network would feature "quite a bit" of live programming. Richard Fisher, the general manager of the channel, noted that his experience 10 years ago producing a television computer show illustrated the success of live call-in components. When The Site airs, he said, "the lines are still jammed two hours after." Interactive game shows are also included in a potential lineup, but Hippeau was vague about what technology would be used.

There are other uncertainties as well. Halsey Minor, CEO of online computer network CNET, said ZDTV faces a real question of relevance. "Can you imagine the computer users in year 2000 getting their information from an analog cable channel?" he asked. "With News.com and Wired News streaming audio and video [by then], who's going to wait for the five o�clock computing news?"

Practically speaking, ZDTV faces two central obstacles: cable distribution and content. During his launch speech, Hippeau offered only vagaries about ZDTV's distribution strategy. "It was a weird announcement," Minor said. "If it were easy to get distribution, they would have announced a partner.... They would have said, 'Hey, we have TCI carrying our programming.'"

Distribution is arguably the key element for any start-up cable channel. Minor should know: When CNET considered launching a cable news effort in 1994, he said he was careful to avoid the "broken" model of a 24-hour cable channel. In turn, the company produced four shows to run on other networks like USA and the Sci-Fi Channel. "Our strategy was to build a brand by launching four or five shows," Minor said. "[Ziff-Davis] thinks we're going to do this, and they're trying to head us off at the pass."

New channels now face a "traffic jam" over the capacity of cable, said David Bohrman, executive producer of The Site. "Getting space on cable systems is really difficult because there are just a limited number of channels."

Even with a distribution deal, it remains to be seen if ZDTV can fill 24 hours with shows. "It's a lot of work to fill a 24-hour cable channel with interesting material," Bohrman observed. "Anyone who wants to do that has a lot of work ahead of them."

"There is certainly enough content," countered Bill Doyle, an analyst at Forrester Research who used to work for Ziff-Davis. "Obviously, though, they won�t be doing 24 hours of fresh stuff."